Help and Connections

Last weekend I attended a support event for veterans. The event was coordinated by Operation Engage America at the Elks Lodge in Frederick, MD. I only heard about the event because Angela was attending in her official capacity, representing Hagerstown Community College. I was surprised that there wasn’t more information out about the event. I know that the VA and many different organizations that work with veterans knew about it because they had representatives there. So I was disappointed that the outreach in our community wasn’t as good a it could have been. Reaching out to veterans can be problematic. Part of the problem is that people spanning so many generations are veterans. So outreach for Post-9/11 veterans is different from Vietnam veterans and WW2 veterans. This is why spreading the word is so important for help and connections.

Some of the organizations that stood out are listed below.

Save A Warrior
They provide a PTSD program that operates in Malibu and Lexington, KY.

Re-Building Veterans
This is a local program in Brunswick, MD. They have a ten-bed house and support homeless veterans.

I was really impressed with both of these programs! I also had the chance to speak with Melissa Barber who is our regional representative from the Maryland Veterans Administration. There were also representatives from the VAMC in Martinsburg as well as people from the Veterans Centers in Martinsburg, WV and Silver Spring, MD.

The help and connections that were available are helpful, and having everyone in the same place was also very helpful. They just need more help marketing the events. We as veterans need to spread the word to other veterans. It is so important because most veterans know other veterans in their area.